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Vilas Flying Boat
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Jack Vilas (seated) in the Curtiss hydroplane he used to spot forest fires for the Wisconsin Conservation Department. (His companion is not identified.) This is believed to be the first use of an airplane for conservation work.
1915
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Collection Information
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W013IK3
WHi 10498
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Vilas Flying Certificate
1915
Certificate issued to E.M. Griffith, the Wisconsin State Forester, so that Griffith could prove that he had flown at an altitude of 1600 feet in the "flying boat" piloted by Jack Vilas. A portrait...
Glenn Curtiss Flying Langley's Plane
Image of Curtiss flying an airplane over a body of water. There is a hill along the shoreline in the background.
Vilas Flying Boat
July 1, 1913
The Curtiss flying boat in which Jack Vilas made the first flight across Lake Michigan. Vilas, a Chicago businessman, was greeted by a crowd of aerial enthusiasts. His achievement was not only the ...
Man with State Forestry Headquarters Sign
circa 1925-1945
A man is standing outdoors next to a sign that reads: "Northern State Forest, State Forest Headquarters, District Forest Ranger, State Forest Nursery. Wisconsin Conservation Commission."
Pilot Hugh Robinson and his Hydroplane
October 19, 1911
Pilot Hugh Robinson and his Curtiss hydroplane at Prairie du Chien during a flight that was intended to be the first all the way down the Mississippi River to New Orleans.
